A DTS outreach from the Reef to Outback (Australia) DTS

written by Justin Watson

I arrived in East Timor excited and ready to begin the outreach. Flying over the land, it was incredible to see the undulating hills of lush tropical greenery unfold beneath me. The whole ride from the airport, I couldn't stop smiling. I was so excited to see kids playing soccer in the streets. This certainly wasn't America.

I soon realized that going and playing soccer with the kids (ranging in age from 7-15) was an excellent way to build relationships with them. Therefore, one afternoon, Chris and I went down to where a group of kids were kicking a ball around and joined them. The kids loved it, soon calling us by the names of our nation's soccer heroes, some of whom we had never heard. Before we knew it, we were going down to a soccer field to play a game. It was so cool - anybody could play. People came from all over when they heard a game was on, especially when they heard that some malai (foreigners) were playing. It was amazing to go from playing soccer on the street to playing a pick-up game with the whole neighborhood. Because of the game many new relationships have started.